Pepsi Sign Moves Again
BY AMY FISHER

The Pepsi-Cola sign that adorned the largest Pepsi bottling plant in the United States since 1938 was moved to its present location, surrounded by newly constructed apartment buildings on the East River waterfront in Long Island City, in 2005. It will be moved again to keep views of the East River and Manhattan from another building constructed by Rockrose Development Corporation unobscured.

The Pepsi-Cola sign that has greeted eastbound New Yorkers crossing the Queensboro Bridge for more than 70 years faces yet another move on its way to a new permanent home.

The bright red neon sign was put up on the waterfront Pepsi-Cola bottling plant in Hunters Point by the Artkraft Strauss Sign Corporation in 1938. Neon signs were a new and exciting way to show off a company's logo and the 120-foot-long Pepsi sign, the largest neon sign to be built on a company's rooftop, adorned the largest Pepsi bottling plant in the United States at the time. Artkraft Strauss refurbished the sign in 1994.

The sign was moved to ground level when the Pepsi Company sold the land to the Rockrose Development Corporation, which began construction of several apartment complexes on the site in August 2004. Even though the Pepsi sign was not an officially designated city landmark, many New Yorkers considered it to be an icon and the community clamored for the sign to be saved. When the Pepsi bottling plant moved to another waterfront location, the sign was dismantled and reconstructed in 2005.

The sign is now to be moved about 300 yards south of its second location. A new foundation is to be laid and then the sign will be moved, letter by letter. Some letters may undergo restoration. Many New Yorkers say they are happy they can still see the Pepsi sign's bright red light shining.

The move has been planned so that the Pepsi sign will not obstruct the view from the new apartment condos to be built on the waterfront. Rockrose has named the 184-unit building The View at East Coast. According to real estate sources, one-bedroom apartments in the building, designed by Handel Architects, will start at $760,000, two-bedroom units at $1.2 million and three-bedroom units at $1.465 million. Other Rockrose projects in the vicinity include rental buildings at Queens West.